PHOTO GALLERY (10)

1996 Chevy S10 Blazer Project - All Hail The Almighty Dime!

If you've been reading the last few issues of OFF-ROAD, you have probably noticed that we've made a few mentions of our S-10 project, although we haven't published too many photos of it. That's because it took a fair amount of work just to get it to move under its own power-a new fuel-injection system was installed, along with a variety of other repair parts. We're happy to announce that the '96 Blazer is now running strong and ready for some action. So, without further delay, we ordered up a suspension lift, tires, and wheels to officially start the project build.

For some time, we hadn't known of many shops that specialized in S-10-based mods, but after some online research, we came across Metul Munky Fabrication, an outfit run by a bona-fide S-10 nut who simply goes by the name Jeffro. We ordered up a BDS 5.5-inch suspension lift, a set of 33x12.50 Hankook Dynapro MT tires, and some Type-D Black Rock wheels and had everything delivered to the Metul Munky headquarters, where the crew got right to work.

The BDS kit uses a pretty tried-and-true, design for torsion bar IFS setups. Basically, it lowers the mounting points of all suspension hardware (A-arms, cross-bar, etc.) and depends on torsion bar adjustment to further angle the A-arms downward, for greater height. This kind of lift kit doesn't increase front wheel travel, but it's about the simplest way to raise this kind of truck, and will greatly help approach and departure angles, which had been one of our primary concerns-the Blazer, in its stock form, seemed to be only a few inches higher than some sort of street-truck lowrider.

1. Here's the Almighty Dime in its stock form, just after we had remedied the fuel injection problems. The 4.3L V-6 actually provides a fair amount of pop, but the Blazer sat so low to the ground that we constantly ran into clearance problems.

In the rear, the BDS kit modifies the mounting of the leaf springs so a spring-over-axle setup can be utilized. This kind of modification is extremely common in the Jeep world. Longer shocks round out the package on all four corners, and the ride height is just less than 6 inches above stock.

We've long admired the tread pattern on the Hankook Dynapro MT tire-it's an aggressive, blocky design that obviously provides a lot of traction. We mounted a set of 33s on some sharp-looking special edition Black Rock wheels...and despite the lift, still had a lot of tire rub. No matter, we had fiberglass fenders and a metal saw-but we'll tell you more about that in our next installment. In the meantime, let it be known that OFF-ROAD now has a functional S-10 project...the Almighty Dime.

2. That's better! Between the BDS suspension lift and the 33-inch Hankooks, the Dime is now about 6 inches taller than stock. We were pleasantly surprised to realize the Blazer actually looks kind of mean! We'll tell you more about the fiberglass in the next installment, and we'll also reveal our bumper choice.